AllFreeNovel
Share Us
What type of woman am I?
Am I like my red-haired beauty, who sees love for all its glorious possibility, or am I like Inessa, who deems it too dangerous a thing to touch?
These are the thoughts that rummage through my mind, when the very man who is the culprit for raising those same questions calls out my name. That’s when I see that Levi is now standing up from his seat, the hall completely quiet, waiting for him to speak.
With a bright smile still on his face, he stretches his hand for me to take. I plant my hand in his and stand from my seat, schooling my expression to show nothing.
“I have invited you all here tonight for this celebratory feast as my own way of welcoming Queen Katrina of Bratsk, queen of the north and all the kingdom of Aikyam. I wanted her to feel as at home in the east as she does in the north,” Levi announces, his eyes never leaving mine. From my peripheral vision, I can see that not everyone shares in his sentiment of being so welcoming, but then again, why would they be? I’m the sole daughter of the man who killed their beloved king and queen. Their animosity is warranted, but I am thankful that at least here, in this hall and in this castle, they keep their opinions to themselves.
“You all know the reason why our queen has ventured to our home. She wishes to unify our kingdoms by offering her hand in marriage. I know many of you wish that she would look to Arkøya to find her king, not because you want to unify the land as she does, but because we need to heal. We need to heal a wound that has been festering for decades. One that still hurts us every day when we send our children to the battlefronts. We want our men to stay home and tend to their families, instead of going to war and returning to us in caskets. Yes, that is the only reason why we east-borns even tolerate this queen’s presence in our court.”
My cheeks turn hot at Levi’s speech, while everyone in the room looks either uncomfortable to be here watching such a scene or counting their lucky stars they aren’t missing it. I try to pull my hand away from Levi’s, but he keeps it locked with his. My gaze slices to his, but he still looks at me like he did back in his garden—with stars in his eyes.
I’m confused as well as hurt when Levi turns to his people and continues on with his speech.
“Well, let me assure you all of one thing. Hear me now and hear me true. If Queen Katrina ever decides that her fate should lie with the east, and that I be her king, I will accept her offer, not because I want her crown to free us from our suffering but because my heart has been bound to hers since my infancy.”
Gasps and hollers split the crowd. I slam my jaw shut for fear that it might drop to the floor.
“You all see a snake in our midst, while I see our deliverance. As I was reminded earlier today, our queen is not her father, nor should she be judged for his sins. As proof to her love for the east, she has abolished the law where children from the age of six onward serve her by enlisting in our forces. But not only that, in the new law she has passed, only those men who feel the need to serve in this way should volunteer themselves to our troops. No longer will the sick and feeble be ordered to abandon their homes to raise their swords against an enemy that was never truly theirs. No longer will mothers cry when their babies are ripped from their arms. She has freed us from the bondage that has terrorized our land. She has given us this gift. What is my heart in comparison?”
The hall suddenly explodes in glee, shouts and laughter all ring loudly and bounce off its halls. Tears of utter joy run down lords’ faces, and their ladies’ alike. An explosion of such happiness the world has ever seen.
Levi pulls my hand up to his lips and places a tender kiss to it, lifting his head just a sliver for me to catch his eyes. His, too, look watery, as if I have rewritten all the wrongs that have been done to him.
“What is a heart, Kat, when you’ve given me freedom?” he whispers.
Too out of words to even conjure up a single one, I limit myself to offering him a simple nod. He throws me a wink, and turns his attention to his people, the ones that are still out of their minds with happiness. I watch them all celebrate the news, while my insides are being pulled in every direction.
All I did was write on a piece of parchment and sign my name.
I’m not worthy of this.
The same people that gave me the side-eye and cursed my name a second ago are staring at me like the gods themselves have come down from the heavens just to bless them.
The urge to flee is so strong, I think I might throw up.
“Kat?” I hear Levi whisper, concerned. “What’s wrong?”
“This… this… it’s too much.”
He raises my chin up with the pad of his forefinger and gazes into my eyes.
“This… is because of you. You have liberated us from decades of oppression, Kat.”
“All I did was sign a piece of paper.” I swallow the tears that threaten to leave me.
“Words hold power, Kat. Your father held that power in his hand and wielded it to enslave us. And it was yours that set us free.”
Levi then bends down and gives me a chaste kiss. The kind of kiss that promises he’ll find a way of setting me free from my bindings too. The cheers only grow louder, and when I open my eyes, I understand why.
With this kiss, Levi has all but presented me as his future bride, even though I haven’t chosen him yet.
And though I’m not yet sure of what will happen to us in the long run, in the end, I achieved what I set out to do.
Levi’s loyalty is now mine.
That’s what I wanted. All I ever wanted.
